Hi Texas Dave, thank you for that reply. It gives me a couple of options with the lighter loads.

Unfortunately Steve's data is only regurgitated Vihtavuori .300 Lapua load data......which is the same data that is covered in the 6mmbr article on .30-338!

It seems to be that the only published data is provided by Vihtavuori!

I should have added I've got access to Quickload (through a friend), but that doesn't list US869!!!

Please can somebody help with a US869 load!

I'm assuming that this is not an improved version, since you didn't mention that it is. If not, the data I gave you for the 300 RUM with 869 and 240s should be pretty close. You might start at 99g and work up 1 gr at a time til you find the load you want.

__________________
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1

"And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God?" Thomas Jefferson - Notes on the State of Virginia

I'm assuming that this is not an improved version, since you didn't mention that it is. If not, the data I gave you for the 300 RUM with 869 and 240s should be pretty close. You might start at 99g and work up 1 gr at a time til you find the load you want.

That sounds like my best bet. As for the cartridge its a relatively standard .300 Lapua case. I was kind of hoping that other people might be running the same load, and as such offer a certain 'safety blanket' off which to work base loads. I'm always a little bit reluctant running off loads for similar size cases (even though it should work fine) rather than actual load/quickload predictions.

As to a previous post about it only costing $20 to do initial 15-20 round load development...I wish it was that cheap here in the UK! I feel like crying every time I pull the trigger...then when I think about barrel wear on top, it could be like the great flood all over again!

Tiff you are right . I have never seen a designation like that with the same case it
is either a 300 LM or a 338 LM (Hence the confusion on my part).

I though you were talking about the 30/338 WIN MAG, Because the 300 Lupua
and the 338 Lapua are the same case and there should be plenty of loading data.
for it.

The Lapua case has about the same case capacity as the 338 RUM so the loading should
be close and if you start low you should be able to work up to the pressure you want.

The reloading manuals show that for an example; If you were to use H 1000 with a 200gr
bullet that 102grs would be a compressed charge in both the 338 LM and the 338 RUM.
So the 300 RUM would have a 4 to 6 grain advantage over the 300 LM.

That sounds like my best bet. As for the cartridge its a relatively standard .300 Lapua case. I was kind of hoping that other people might be running the same load, and as such offer a certain 'safety blanket' off which to work base loads. I'm always a little bit reluctant running off loads for similar size cases (even though it should work fine) rather than actual load/quickload predictions.

As to a previous post about it only costing $20 to do initial 15-20 round load development...I wish it was that cheap here in the UK! I feel like crying every time I pull the trigger...then when I think about barrel wear on top, it could be like the great flood all over again!

Your case is a necked down 338 Lap case, right? Is there such a thing as a factory 300 Lap? If it's necked down 338 Lap case it should handle more pressure than a RUM case. Start low and work up... Don't forget that 869 is temp sensitive.

__________________
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1

"And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God?" Thomas Jefferson - Notes on the State of Virginia

Your case is a necked down 338 Lap case, right? Is there such a thing as a factory 300 Lap? If it's necked down 338 Lap case it should handle more pressure than a RUM case. Start low and work up... Don't forget that 869 is temp sensitive.

Yep its just a necked down .338 Lap Mag case. I think I will follow all of your advise and start at 97.0 grains and work up until I reach pressure. Then back it off a bit (is only 50-60 F at the moment) so I don't hit pressure when it warms up....if summer ever does arrive!

As for the .300 Lap Mag it did exist in a material form, but now only exists on the CIP records/VV Manual. Would be a good headstamp case to get, but I don't think it ever went that far in production....

Yep its just a necked down .338 Lap Mag case. I think I will follow all of your advise and start at 97.0 grains and work up until I reach pressure. Then back it off a bit (is only 50-60 F at the moment) so I don't hit pressure when it warms up....if summer ever does arrive!

Tiff

Just ran the numbers in QL.

Using the standard case volume of 102gr, Sierra 240gr MK seated to a cartridge OAL of 3.7", and 97gr of US869, using 3625psi initiation pressure, the supplied case weighting factor of .55, and a guessed 26" barrel, resulted with 2832fps and a max chamber pressure of 64981 psi. The listed max pressure for the 30-338 Lapua is 63817 psi, so you might want to back off a little more. 94gr shows 57.7Kpsi, and that might be a better place to start! This was done with the Temp setting on 70 deg, but adjusting it down to avg 55 deg, the pressure falls to 63Kpsi, which is right under max listed pressure.

If you want to run the numbers yourself, send me a pm and I'll give you the QL info for US869.